Playing good at practice, but struggling in matches?

Are you playing great at practice, but feel like you can't compete in matches?
It's normal. In this genuine conversation with this young professional player, we discuss why it's the case and how you can address it.
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THE COACH
Patrick

[@scoogsy]

That lesson was so insightful. I needed that lesson as much as she did. Its about the process, not the destination. I’ll be taking this with me for life.

[@Dulakx]

No! I am taking this for life with me. Mine now. 🙂

[@altugbsg143]

sorry guys just took it, byee

[@LiamApilado]

This video shows how mentally tough tennis is when playing at a high level. Many people have the same tools as you (groundstrokes, serves, etc) but not everyone executes according to their plan. Tennis is much, or even more, a mental battle than a physical battle at the highest level. That is why I love tennis.

[@LiamApilado]

Tennis is as* much

[@squeedum4893]

100% agree. At the top level, mindset is everything.

[@theelitebomb5340]

i love your videos

[@LiamApilado]

@@theelitebomb5340 thank you!

[@carlodave9]

It’s tough at any level. The ability to focus is usually the difference between equally matched players at any level. Meditation is the most simple route to mental improvement, because it is all about bringing discipline to the mind and gaining control of focus. Everything this guy is saying is about being in the moment and not paying attention to inner jabber about circumstances. It’s easy to talk about it and to say to not to do it, but meditation is actual practice of it. And who gets better at anything without practice?

[@LiamApilado]

Not long ago, in order for us to get this knowledge we would have to fly across the world and have a face to face lesson. Now we can gain access to the greatest minds anytime, from anywhere just with our two thumbs. KZbin is an amazing tool for learning and sharing passion.

[@christiane785]

One reason I love tennis is that the lessons you learn on the court translate well off the court. This lesson could easily be applied to school, business or relationships.

[@UhhhhhnooOOo00oO]

Exactly. Not for enjoyment...... To make money

[@Jackripster69]

What we need to know is how Patrick keeps himself in shape. At 50+ he looks in shape to play on tour, particularly in the legs.

[@ObservingtheMatrix]

It’s that French body!

[@henryng9406]

10¹1⁰00¹2

[@NLLeFa]

It really isn't hard to look good. Aging doesn't stop us from being active, the mind does. Most people just settle being average after marriage and they blame age for bad habits. Everybody who is healthy enough to walk can fit 45-60 minutes daily to workout. Whether it's weights or anything else. And it's not even necessary to do it every day for results. It depends on how much you want to invest into being in shape. 3 days is still okay.

[@eton13_]

You think at 50 years old your supposed to all of a sudden turn into a fat slob ? No eat clean and stay active its very simple

[@dildobaggins2759]

Look at them smooth legs looks like girls legs not a single hair...?

[@zacconti5365]

This is an absolute gem of a video. Thanks Patrick. I put this into practice today. I have a similar feeling to her, so on my groundstrokes in my match today i only focused on 2 things: keep my eyes on the ball and accelerating the hand. And the serve: focus on accelerating with spin. HUGE difference. Felt almost no nerves once the point started. And i was happy even tho i lost! (I was playing a much better player idk if that helped) but I was so happy with myself for doing those things well. Edit: and that was hands down the best i have ever hit groundstrokes in a match setting

[@timlee8419]

She has already made me a fan, and hope she realizes that there are "good misses" in tennis too, in the process of pursuing your intents! Totally agree that winning matches is a result (or symptom), and is not a healthy or consistently achievable goal or target (for most of us). Sometimes you have to lose 1 to win 3, and step backwards to move forward. I really appreciate the candidness, openess and vulnerability shown by the student, and the willingness to seek and listen to other's advice and perspectives. It also looks like she is getting the parent support and stress management tools to cope. I just know she will succeed, with the great skills she clearly shows on the court, and will make the transition to pro with the right mental aspects!

[@roman2374]

It’s great that instead of just telling her he gives her enough room to figure the key aspects out for herself which is so much more meaningful. When I learn something new on my own it motivates me so much more than just reading that same method in a book. She got what she came for!

[@luciobecker2637]

At 53 years i've decided to try play my best tennis. Day by day i became aware that do well all things that depend only on me is first step of road. Thanks for all your videos Mr. Mouratoglu and Greetings from Rome Italy.

[@thanhn2001]

Best coach ever. Thanks for this lesson in mental fortitude to focus on improvement rather than immediate result

[@fabiograppasonno1495]

What we can control is the path, not the destination. We all tend to focus on the result because it's the reason of our glory, our happiness, but often to achieve this goal we start to struggle of anxiety, tension and nervousness because we only want the final success. I committed this mistake for years and I'm paying the consequences. I'm two different players between practice and matches and I struggle to solve this problem. Coach Mouratoglu did us many precious tips that we have to put in practice immediately.

[@mikyp9417]

Yes we do thank you ! We watched this videos together with my daughter, she will set up a simple goal: accelerate and hit through the ball during the ralley and practice games . And focus on her goal not her result

[@hotstixx]

Great to have a great coach...and also seems to be a great guy.

[@modreyx]

wow! sports psychology from one of the best. thanks for sharing the wisdom. its amazing how far mentors, coaches teachers etc. can take you...

[@poofykins]

you practice to get good and consitent at a skill...then you hit the ball because the shot is there / available...weather you make it or not is not the goal, the goal was just hitting the ball, the practice makes the shot work. if your focus is on the result of a shot, then you have emotional connection to making or missing. if you hit the ball that was your goal, you succeeded (and knowing that you make it in practice all day gives you the freedom to just take your shot) I used this in basketball and every shot I take is a success because my goal is to get the shot off (and i know based on practice that it's going in) and became a pro and shoot over 60% 3pts in every pro am and league. Now i'm picking up tennis (been playing almost a month so i'm learning the skills) but once i get skill i'm applying the same mental technique and within 2 years i can be at a pro level.

[@bbbby519]

wow, what a beautiful recommendation! Do whatever that depends on yourself and enjoys the games!

[@jeffhermida4788]

Old book called “The inner game of Tennis” explains why we don’t perform at our best during competition.

[@K4R3N]

"Winning Ugly"

[@ajayreddy8732]

Absolutely Amazing book.

[@samuelrosslee408]

THANK YOU. You saved me from having to write this. DO NOT THINK AT ALL. Focus on Your Breathing.

[@jeffhermida4788]

@@samuelrosslee408 yes!! Reminds me Osaka’s post match interview once. She was asked about strategy and she said there is no thinking on court balls come to me and i automatically know what to do. That’s a competitor’s mind set right there!! She must’ve read the book too! Lol

[@jeffhermida4788]

@@K4R3N great book too!

[@artboy2]

This is great. The thing that helps me in a match to focus on is keeping my feet moving between strokes and points. Again its something that depends on me and I can control and has nothing to do with a result

[@minisurfbanana]

Same feet feet feet and hit the ball at peak!

[@ZhongweiLiu]

Really great coaching. Focus on improvements and actions that's up to ourselves, no judgement based on results. It's a great advice for tennis and also for life. Many thanks for both of your invaluable sharing!

[@MrRockrobstr]

Excellent advice, Patrick! Superb!! 🙌

[@qmcqueen2429]

I think I love this man

[@htainlindwa80]

That’s a good mind lesson. I am going to try that.

[@ME-et7ck]

wonderful and thank you

[@danielmannix8777]

Patrick for me was born to coach after this talk it’s not just the idea it’s how he delivers the content, it make you things that’s achievable and. Seem very practical for me this make’s complete sense I see terrible coaching every day in football and they continue to be in work because people believe that results in grassroots are the goal. Which is completely wrong

[@christams8863]

Thank you! That will help to improve my tennis game by a lot! Focus on the process and not on the results!

[@leondiehl6367]

Amazing Tips, not only for tennis players! Gonna use that in my next practice and match;)

[@massanwar3040]

Hi Patrick nice video, keep the relatable content coming mate

[@Tech_Publica]

Ok, I usually like to find defects and criticise but in this advice is pure gold...

[@charliefoster6710]

As a 50+ gentleman who enjoys playing singles tennis I truly appreciate your insight with this young lady in terms of what a realistic goal should be at each practice session and match to improve/advance at the next practice session and match. As much as one would like to win, IMHO this train of thought takes the pressure off of winning while at the same time gives one the tools to achieve the desired goal the next time around. 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾

[@tennisfitapp]

Yes some top tips Patrick!

[@evilbyron]

This talk should help me a lot! Thanks

[@turbogunhawk10s43]

I love the advice.

[@lucasbarbieri2632]

Amazing coach

[@12GaugePadawan]

11:37 I could hear Yoda “There is no try. There is only do.”

[@pzicca8175]

Wonderful lesson.

[@atrem7942]

This is amazing stuff.

[@Klondike877]

The day my coach told me stop thinking on the futur results or past results and concentrate on present Me, to tell myself my muscles are able and program to be able to make a service that pass the net and end on a large area of the court, I stopped missing my second serve... mental makes everything, and praticing this technique put me in a bubble when I was doing a second serve which allowed me to perform excellent second serve if I had too.

[@PeterFreemantennis]

Great advice coach

[@Elsonwang2007]

Thank you for the video. I think the advice will be the game changer for her. One more thing is how to measure “moving forward”. I think she need to count how many times she moves forward during the match from the match videos. Sometimes you feel you are moving forward but when you see your video, it’s a different story.

[@boyzemail4769]

THANK YOU

[@harrymckenzie3725]

As a youngster I played for years, was reasonably good but angry, losing my temper a lot. After destroying 2 rackets that my mom had given me, the first time I tried them out, I decided to quit. Then, some 5 years later I decided to get a racket and play again, no expectations at all just having fun. For 6 months or so I played the best tennis I had ever played, free and careless, was amazing! Then slowly I started to expect to play a certain level again and that's where I started to play a little more cramped again at times. But I never went back to destroying rackets again, which I plan on never doing again

[@sherlockhomeless7138]

I think many young people have about the same level, but are somewhere between 500-1200 on the rankings. You reach a semi final somewhere, you make a big leap. You get injured for 6 months, you fall back. So, I think this lesson is great, to focus just on what you can improve.

[@mbowman2161]

Mouratoglou: Do or do not. There is no try. 👌

[@eduro1660]

Magnific

[@LiamApilado]

Excellent! I want to know how you manage your energy as you have so many and so different types of players to coach and things to manage as a buisiness man.

[@brownsintown2140]

Who is she? I want to see some of her matches

[@jacobwalton4109]

Thank you for this video I have felt like I was improving at a high rate and I know I have the ability to compete with players at 8-10 utrs but I lose to players with lower utrs because of my expectations. Thank you and I will try to change my focus to what I want to accomplish during a match and not focus so much on my results.

[@poofykins]

what's a UTRS ? I beat a 4.0 last week in a singles match AND HE WAS PISSSED haha 2 weeks before I lost to a 75 year old guy who can barely move. :P

[@knotwilg3596]

Gold.

[@souly25life]

This guy is good 👍🏿

[@wongjefx980]

Nice discussion. Not sure if same for pros and amateurs, but as rec player, practice and lessons are fun, but points play, I get nervous and anxious and percentage of unforced errors skyrocket and can’t beat players at lower levels than me.

[@knotwilg3596]

It IS the same for pros and amateurs. The main difference is that professionals have time to work on this kind of mental practice. We often come on court after a day of work, where we already need to be mentally tough and then loosen up or stiffen up during a match. Or we went out the night before, have alcohol in our veins or just a few hours of sleep ... Professionals are obliged to remain in good physical shape, which helps the mental process. Still, if you focus on the ball, your footwork, your point strategy, ... your mind is not occupied with "I can't lose to this lousy guy". Good luck!

[@andresf1984]

“It’s up to me”. I should write it everyday.

[@lionelbidois7115]

Even as an amator, it happened to me to, I mean when I was a beginner my playing was more than enough, so I was a good player to my level and then when I started to have a purpose in terms of level (in order to be a coach) I competed a lot plus lot of training beside, more I competed more I became a bad competitor so I really didn’t understand (plus lot of training!) 😳😱 I almost gave up because of that, to much frustrating

[@mamyrakoto7717]

Merci beaucoup Patrick de vulgariser ainsi l’aspect mental dommage qu’il ne soit pas en français mais ce n’est pas grave je traduirai l’esprit aux joueurs de tennis dont je suis le préparateur mental et qui rencontre cette problématique dont la source est multifactorielle. J’explique souvent à ces joueurs que la somme des ingrédients ne fait pas la mayonnaise et que même si elle prend de temps à autre elle peut tourner si l’on n’y prend pas garde. Tout ceci pour dire que l’aspect mental est un processus mais dans notre pays, la France, beaucoup croient encore que c’est un remède miracle. Merci beaucoup pour votre approche, faire naître la synergie entre la technique, le physique et le mental pour faire des joueurs de tennis des personnes heureuses en surmontant leurs challenges. Merci encore.

[@goggleboy2464]

So true you can't have good results if your focus is the result. Literally almost any other focus will be better , just enjoying each point isnt a bad idea. Hit serve, run to net, attack ball lol. Simple. Works great in doubles especially. Or hit serve bounce on toes , go quick, attack ball with spin, or meat ball in front driving through.

[@MastersOfTheHeart]

Hi Patrick, great insight... but... I think we do know who is the women's current number 1... Greetings from Australia mate! Hope you know how much you help the weekend player improve our game, you are an amazing coach!

[@nightowldickson]

Yeah most of the video is fantastic but I don't know what Patrick is talking about not clear who is women's world number 1. Barty is currently miles ahead of the competition, in terms of variety, strategy, mindset, consistency, focus and what she wants to achieve. On the other hand, some of the WTA players are not playing at their maximum potential and underachieving.

[@htainlindwa80]

Ashleigh B.

[@bbbby519]

Not a clue!

[@batmon696]

Because though she is great competitively and skillfully, she is not dominating to the exent of Maria Sharapova, William's sisters, and the likes (Fed, Nadal, Djoker). Is that a fair comparison to make for her? No, but that is the reality of being a pro athlete. If you are not winning/making finals/semis of near every tourney in the tennis calendar year, have exciting gameplay and highlights, opponents to create a narrative, or even at least the charisma to draw in majority fans and press across the world. Well you become another piece of eventually someone else's story that does all those things. That's just the bar set by those who he was likely referring to

[@vforvendetta275]

@@nightowldickson probably at that time was in the know about Ash retiring

[@TravelPortugalBrasilTPB]

Thank you for this great video 👍

[@cs16Tactics]

I have the exact opposite 😅 I feel like I'm playing game of my life during matches, and failing all the simple things during practices.

[@tsm2112]

that's a great problem to have lol

[@EINFACHBESSERGOLFEN]

I’ll show you how to play golf and you can help me with my tennis game! To be honest I have got the same story vice versa 😅 my first tennis match had been perfect, but after a few hours of training winning becomes harder 😅👍

[@Jackripster69]

Firstly im a complete spud in comparison - but i tell myself im just having a hit with the other person and its seems to relax me like in practice. It helps me stay focused on playing that one point rather than the outcome.

[@LiamApilado]

This is nice as you focus more on the present moment

[@jassay6435]

What the important is, you cannot be happy if you win and if you didn’t do what you said you would do, you have to be happy only if you did what you promised yourself you would do, this is the process to perform

[@ShaunaCross1]

This is great/ super helpful.

[@allboutthemojo]

Lol. Excellent 👍 . Think Patrick made the poor girl nervous though with his line of questioning. She was struggling to find the right answer instead of just asking him what he meant!

[@boysie86]

From 11:30 to 12:30 that one minute means more than 1 year of practice without a clear goal!!!

[@UchihABitachi]

Who is this player? Is she in the WTA?

[@tl5672]

So good!! Thank you!! But who is this girl??

[@Kazzzzzo]

I hate that. I suck at matches.

[@progressivedemagogue8480]

This girl needs less not more, she has a cluttered mind. Meditation and visualisation for her.

[@User-ks8ds]

Hey what can I do for concentration in balls or match

[@mauriciocalmon1478]

man of class, whats the name of this player?

[@randomperson7445]

i have this same problem - obviously not as good as her, but i beat 6 UTRs and 7s sometimes in practice, but in matches i lock up and push. can’t control my nerves

[@rizwanrauf4940]

OK I will tell you ideal man mindset 1if an ideal man get upset it never put him in state of agitation 2"An ideal man never gets upset for himself

[@jurassiclore5315]

At the moment not clear who is number 1? Barty says hello....

[@derekgleeson1353]

Am I missing something or do we not know her name?

[@rodja8893]

Kapil gupta alsow has good advice

[@attybong]

a best coach is the one who listens .. a lesson the great coach nick bollettieri learned from his student andre agassi

[@thiagobadin5331]

Did she win?

[@minisurfbanana]

Who is she???

[@IEATPEACH]

7:12 lmao maybe Novak Djokovic 😂😂😂

[@davebudge4526]

Never say a french man doesn't know how to listen, talks at the speed of light.

[@admin-ts8uv]

Who is she?, what is her current ranking?

[@fallendevonish1869]

Straight of the bat I'd say this girl looks physically weak compared to the women in the top 20.

[@bassmit9753]

Looks pretty good to me. Wonderful body

[@seanhillery1231]

Layne Sleeth?

[@serbian_nationalist14]

Prolly the pressure playing a match thats worth something unlike practice. And the pressure from hundreds of people watching

[@tennispredictionsandreacti130]

Who is the woman in this video? Is it Clara Tauson, Dayana Yastremska or Marta Kostyuk?

[@lassem1125]

No

[@user-hz9ht2rp9f]

Тереза Мартинкова

[@Club41.BoiteFunk]

One thing for sure is that she's an American girl.

[@Club41.BoiteFunk]

Look young but already 25 years old actually. Best WTA ranking 1235. And by the look of her Instagram more a party girl than a serious tennis player. Very nice to watch though.

[@chuckfriebe843]

Sorry, but the title should read, “Not Playing *Well In Matches?”

[@JamesD-iw6pr]

Skip the first 3:30 minutes...its just her asking him for advice but giving him no opportunity to get a word in.

[@lukehawit4304]

3:20 is where she stops yapping thank me later.

[@jenkinssthomson8879]

Let him get a word in. She needs to learn to listen more and ask better questions.

[@bryanmartin5901]

Who is she? How come he never gives credit to the player and offer publicity ? We would like to follow and support her. But you leave it a mystery.

[@jenkinssthomson8879]

He is such a good listener. She need speak in a concise manner. She sounds spoiled.

[@Roadrunner65553]

The issue is that she’s not learning with every match. It’s just that simple. You PRACTICE so that it’s there when you play a MATCH. She’s not breaking down her game analysis wise after EVERY match. She has to figure out HOW she wins. It’s not going to be like anyone else. She has to also realize that practices mean nothing. The way she’s explaining what she believes her objectives to be is all over the place. Not simplistic. More spin = more serves in is meaningless if you can’t or don’t challenge your opponents front foot.

[@dhannylil2191]

Kalieva

[@weidongwang7607]

the main problem of this girl is not concentration, focus too much details not main point, even ask a question.

[@peterkavanagh64]

Psychology is some of thr issue , serena wolliams had notes arrobjng on the ciurt. The court and the cinditions and the itrms shies rsckeys and strinhers relationshops of naml staff drom this to that to food ????? It might be abiut a aplayform.of prep.then fall to that back.not tp the base camp resteartimg

[@rchm7294]

who is this player? The American :)

[@duanehorton4680]

Playing well, not playing good. That girl should stop saying "like" or "you know" every 10 seconds.

[@vrijeshtantuwaya2613]

Hilarious that despite coaching Serena Williams, he couldn't think of a female example of anyone close to Djokovic.

[@jordanclarkson3700]

who is this girl?

[@shipinspection]

Like in a 5 minute like conversation, like she said "like" about like 50 times. If she like doesn't realize like she is like saying these "likes" all the time, then like its probably like interfering like with her like mental processes like during actual like game play.

[@harryp3804]

Patrick just brain fked with the girl big time 😅😅